An Unsettling Gaze | Dark Invasion of Lani

When Audak’s legs were finally able to move again, the barbarian wasted no time in getting to his feet. Every sound in the dark made him think of those little critters that had sent him smashing two stories to the ground. Just thinking of it made the rage within his blood begin to burn, and Audak could feel the desire to smash the tiny insect-like things become almost uncontrollable.

But he was not the young man who had walked down the from the Spine Mountains a few ten-days ago. He had seen so many things, pushed himself, and learned more in this short time than he had in most of his life before that. His father had been right about the challenges outside the walls. It wasn’t until you needed to stand on your own feet that you truly learned how uneven the ground beneath you was.

Pushing the feelings away, he joined his companions as they quietly and carefully searched through the row-houses of the Stone Ward. While they found no more survivors, it was clear from the evidence in some of the homes that a few of the residents had refused to flee, choosing instead to hole up behind locked doors and boarded up windows. Perhaps they had hoped that it would pass, or that help would come, but in the end their prayers were not answered by the Gods.

As Audak dug through a large storage chest, lifting old dusty blankets out of the container, he felt a gentle tap on his shoulder. Brylla was standing there, nodding her head towards the window where the elf was standing at alert. The ranger had his head cocked, clearly listening to something the others had missed.

“It came from over there”, the elf whispered, pointing across the street. “It may have been a shout, or a scream, but it was muffled and hard to make out. Somebody didn’t want it to be heard.”

Audak leaned over Tanis’ shoulder, looking out the window where the elf had indicated. Across the street were large walls that ran around a compound of some sort. Towers stood at each corner and a large solid gate barred entrance to the courtyard. The walls themselves were so high that they blocked the view of the compound within. What was hiding in there?

The Courtyard

The elf held the door for the others as they moved back into the driving rain outside. The streets were still and quiet, aside from the slapping of the water against the stones, but Tanis still felt like a quiet approach would be best. With a finger to his lips, he gestured with his blade for the others to cross the street while he kept an eye down the back alleys. They moved quietly, approaching the tall gateway with care. It was quiet… too quiet. Tanis didn’t like it.

Dealing with the lock was easy for Al as he expertly manipulated the mechanism and then made way for the goliath. Tanis watched as Audak adjusted the balance of the greataxe in his hands before the goliath shouldered open the gate, daring whatever was on the other side to reveal itself. However, all that met the barbarian was a dark and empty courtyard. Two large trees flanked them as they stepped forward, with a single large dwelling at the far end of the courtyard. The architecture of the house seemed more extravagant than the rest of the quarter, as if a lot of gold had been put into making it obvious that the owner was wealthy. Elaborate designs covered the courtyard walls and an intricate pattern had been carved into the pillars supporting the main entrance. The windows, though they were few, were much larger than the smaller row houses they had just visited, arching upwards towards the roof. Through one of these windows on the ground floor, Tanis could see the shape of a figure moving. Its silhouette was pacing back and forth, seemingly talking with somebody seated at a table. From this distance, Tanis couldn’t make out the words, but he turned his head to his left and right, catching the others attention and pointing at the window.

The others nodded, not needing words to know what to do here. Well, most of them didn’t. Boblin seemed a bit confused by the silent communication of the experienced adventurers. He happily slunk behind Tanis, mimicking the elf’s movements. Al, though he was large enough to almost look Audak in the eye, hunched over so low to the ground that he looked like a great crocodile advancing on all fours, albeit wearing a trench coat that most reptiles probably would have forsaken. He moved straight for the window, keeping out of sight and waiting for the signal.

The door was open, revealing the light inside. Tanis stepped forward, hoping the others would hang back a moment, and stood tall in the door frame.

“What’s going on here?” he called out to the figure in front of him. Tanis could not make out the face because of the hood the man was wearing, but pointed ears seemed to be pushing out the corners of the fabric. Seated at the long table was a man, mumbling incoherently in response to the hooded figure’s questions. The well-dressed figure in the hood stood amongst an extremely opulent decor. The chandeliers and expensive art hanging on the wall felt out of place given their experiences earlier this evening.

“Oh well, isn’t this a pleasant surprise” came the words from inside the hood in fluent Sylvan, as the figure turned to face him. Tanis tried to see the man’s face, but somehow the hood was always concealing it. He brandished an ornate cane in the air as he continued. “Welcome, welcome, I’m so glad to see one of the Eladrin here. Perhaps you’ll be more pleasant company.”

The figure’s speech was crisp, with an accent that Tanis could not place. The words seemed to flow in a way that he had usually only heard amongst his own kind, but there was a haughtiness to the tone. It felt like an air of superiority. Of expectation. Of command. This man was accustomed to being listened to.

He never saw what triggered it, but suddenly the little goblin that had been shadowing him burst forward, rushing past him with shield and blade held high. Boblin slammed into the figure, causing a shout of surprise to escape it. The man’s hood fell backwards, revealing a blank visage. No eyes, no nose, no mouth, just a few wrinkles where a face should have been. How did it speak?

Suddenly, the wrinkles began to pull skin back, revealing a massive mouth with jagged teeth, surrounding a single enormous eye. A screeching sound emitted from the creature’s orifice as the single monstrous eyeball fixated on the charging goblin. Tanis felt disoriented as his eyes locked with the beast’s gaze, all of the elf’s focus now required to keep from losing balance. Was this another agent of the Dark?

Tanis heard the thuds behind him in the courtyard, along with the familiar clacking of tiny claws against the wet stone. Visions of nightmares and shadowy shapes out the corner of his eyeline began to swarm through his mind. They were surrounded!

Eye Wide Shut

The driving rain was pelting Al’s back as he kept himself hunched down below the window, trying to avoid notice. He could hear voices talking, though not in a language that he understood. The sound of a charging figure in full armour was unmistakable in its meaning, though! Hearing the commotion within the building, Al took that as his cue to act. He dug the claws of his feet into the ground and pushed, pulling the collar of his coat up to protect his eyes as his shoulder smashed through the glass. In a fluid motion he rolled to his feet, blade thrusting forward as he moved to corner the creature.

He almost had to avert his eyes as the creature turned its gaze upon him. He had never seen such a thing in all his years, not even in the monstrous tales told to scare young children on the streets of Vornstrand. For all its finely-tailored fabrics and bejeweled fingers, its teeth were sharper than a wyvern and claws longer than his own. Al bobbed and swayed, trying to keep their target off-guard as he positioned himself with his companions to surround this beast. It’s claws may be sharp, but they were three against one; he had confidence they could pen it in.

Wait a moment. Three? Where were Brylla and Audak? Al took the moment to take in his surroundings, scanning the room as he kept focus on the well-dressed creature before them. The dwarf and goliath were nowhere to be seen, only an old man tied to a chair with a gag in his mouth who seemed to be watching the altercation with alternating emotions of bemused interest and wild terror. From outside the main door, Al could hear Audak’s battle cry followed by the sickening sound of an enormous blade crushing into flesh. Whatever was out there was keeping the barbarian and cleric busy.

Al was brought back to reality as pain seared through his right arm. The one-eyed creature had taken advantage of his distraction and opened a gash near his forearm, perhaps trying to get at his blade. The thing bore its gaze upon him, a force penetrating into his mind as it tried to crush his will. He couldn’t turn away from the eye, it felt like he was being swallowed up by the creature. The claws were at his throat…

Over the creature’s shoulder, Al watched as his cleric companion charged through the doorway, the force of her goddess on full display as she attempted to beat back the evil around them. The stocky red-haired dwarf had a power in her eyes at this moment that glowed like the light of a thousand suns. It was a terrifying and welcome sight! Al felt strange, almost as if he was watching the scene unfold from somewhere else. The claws let go of him and he watched as the creature pushed past. The view was off, though, as if he was watching from the floor. Why was he on the floor? The last thing he remembered as he lost consciousness was the sound of running high heeled boots.

A Light in the Dark

Brylla was tired. Tired of the rain. Tired of the hunched over creatures with their snapping claws. Tired of the walking dead roaming through this once-beautiful neighbourhood. Tired of the nagging feeling that something was always just out of sight, watching her every move. Mostly, though, Brylla was tired of the pain that had been brought upon this world. A season ago, something like this would have been completely impossible to imagine. She could feel the anger and sadness surging within her, swirling to take over. Inside the dwarf priestess there was also a burning light. She knew that when it seemed darkest that was when her Lady would shine brightest.

Audak’s blade swung nearby, smashing into one creature after another, crushing them into the ground. Brylla stuck close to the wild barbarian’s side and focused on that light within, reaching out to summon the help she needed. In the dim moonlight of the cloudy night sky, under that pounding storm, hidden in the shadows of the large protective walls around them, suddenly there was bright light.

All around Brylla came the brightly glowing spectres of fierce dwarven warriors. They tore into the creatures around her, forcing screams from their bodies as the divine magic ripped into them. Brylla strode purposefully forward, her shield before her, as she moved her way into the house. Boblin had charged in, and she had heard the crash of glass from around the house, so she knew something had gone wrong inside. When she entered she saw the creature surrounded by the others, looking for a way out.

It’s terrifying eye turned on her but her mind was focused on a single purpose and she wasn’t about to let some ugly eyeball creature with sharp teeth stop her. She was tired of this.

Warding off its attackers with its ornate cane, the creature was desperately looking for a way out. Brylla watched as it seemed to stun some of her companions before tearing at the dragonborn and sending him crashing to the floor. It ran, it’s high-heeled leather boots making a sharp staccato noise as it fled through a door and slammed it closed. Brylla could hear the sound of things being pushed against the door in an attempt to slow down her pursuit. Bracing against the door, she charged in, raising one hand to the heavens and shouting out.

“Enough!” she yelled in dwarven, her power sending a bolt of energy through the air and directly into the creature’s open eye. A scream of pain escaped from the thing as it fell to the ground, twitching. The face was burned badly and had the smell of burnt meat, though the being’s impeccable clothing seemed largely undisturbed.

A Mind Undone

Audak rested on one knee, using his axe as a brace, as he checked on Al’s heartbeat. You could never tell with dragonborn, really. The physiology was different enough to be confusing. Brylla and Tanis joined him, looking for a way to stabilize the rogue.

“Al needs rest” Brylla said as she examined him. Even with magic and Tanis’ help it would be a lot of work to get Al back into fighting shape. Looking around the room, Brylla considered using this place for the night.

“Don’t even think about it” said Tanis, interrupting the dwarf’s thoughts. “Audak said that least two of those bugs got away and they know where we are. We can’t stay here.”

“You’re right, but it’s a long way back to the docks” countered Brylla, eyeing the state of everyone around the room. “We’ll have to move slow and quiet, just in case.”

“What about him?” asked Audak, jabbing a thumb towards the other side of the room where the gagged man still sat at the table. The older man was still spouting nonsense while staring at the wall.

Brylla took the gag off the man, checking to make sure he was okay. Audak could see a wild look in his eyes, a little unfocused, but they found the dwarf’s gaze and seemed to latch on.

“MAKE IT STOP!” he shouted emphatically. “PLEASE, I SWEAR I DON’T KNOW ABOUT THE CRYPT!”

Audak watched as Brylla patiently tried to talk the man down into some sense of calm, but every now and then the terror in him seemed to irrationally bubble up and take over.

“I’M TELLING YOU THE TRUTH! I DON’T KNOW HOW TO OPEN IT!”

What was the old man gibbering on about? Brylla seemed to be getting somewhere, finding out something about the church. The old man seemed to even remember the stained glass, but then a look would come over his eyes and the focus would be gone.

“This is pointless, Brylla, let’s take him with us” suggested Audak, not wanting to hear any more of the man’s shouts of pain. It was unnerving to listen to someone whose mind had been so utterly broken. “It’s going to take more than your magic to fix what’s broken with this one.”

His dwarven companion looked torn, clearly wanting to get more information but knowing there was likely only so much they could find out. At least they knew a little bit more now. Whomever that interrogator in the fancy clothing had been, it had been looking for information about something in the church basement, specifically something closed that could not be opened. Whatever it was, the Dark was sending a lot of powerful creatures to try to get it.

As they slipped through the wet night, trying to stick to the shadows and make their way silently back to the tavern, Audak looked back over his shoulder to see if they were being followed. He could swear he had seen something, but when he looked it wasn’t there. Tanis prodded him along, making sure they all kept moving. It had been a horrifying night.

When the goliath finally saw the lights of Valor’s Rest, like a beacon in the dark, his mood lifted. The front door had been hastily boarded up meaning they had to get in through the upper stories, but inside it was warm, dry, well-lit, and filled with other people. Of note, not a single one of them was a shuffling undead creature bent on tearing his face off. That made a huge deal in lightening the mood!

Boblin and the others seemed to be getting into some discussion about what to do next, but Audak settled into a chair, his feet up on the table, and leaned back. It was time for a rest.

Credits

Cover image: “Welcome to my parlour” by Jason St-Cyr, composition of “Fear Smith” artwork by Kobold Press and “A dark and opulent dining room” generative art by @ahmadzada, sourced from freepik.com